After more than two years as a witch, I will be leaving the Eastwick fold on Friday, September 21, for The Conversation Group. A few people may know that I first met Barbara and Giovanni (former EW principal) at a PRSA Counselor’s Academy conference. The conference is geared toward very senior PR folks – VPs and principals – and I was the most junior person there with less than two years under my belt. Needless to say, I held my own, and won Barb and G over with the now infamous Black Martini, also known as a chocolate espresso martini.

The past 2+ years have seen some big changes for Eastwick – office moves and office additions – and for me – move to Silicon Valley and promotion to Senior Associate. Four years ago, I never would have thought that I’d have passionate discussions about the 802.11n standard (still not ratified), or become intimately familiar with wikis. I’ve had some incredible clients during my time here – Ruckus Wireless, Vyatta, and BroadLogic to name a few. The entire Eastwick team has really become a family to me, and I’ve learned so much. I’ve made some really great friends that I’ve had some great times with – G, thanks again for bailing us out of the SJ jail – and I know I will continue to into the future.

Living here in Silicon Valley, we are right in the middle of daily innovation, disruption, and evolution. Being in PR, we see how communications are changing, and how people want to participate in the conversation, not just be spoken to. On October 1, I’ll be joining The Conversation Group which was recently launched by partners Giovanni Rodriguez, Ted Shelton, and Chris Heuer. As the Director of Integrated Media Campaigns, I’ll be working with the team to help global brands that are seeking better ways to participate in the new communications landscape. It will be an exciting, new adventure!

I’ll miss working with my colleagues and clients on a daily basis, but I believe that once a witch, always a witch. I’m looking forward to seeing everyone at the upcoming Black & Orange Bash! Cheers!

Barbara Bates, BroadLogic, Chris Heuer, Eastwick, Eastwick Communications, Giovanni Rodriguez, Networking, PR, Ruckus Wireless, Ted Shelton, The Conversation Group, Vyatta, Wireless

A friend of mine and I were comparing stories about the increased number of dropped calls we’ve experienced lately, on the new AT&T (formerly Cingular) network. As tech-savvy Valley residents, we had to wonder “what could be causing this?” And then it hit us…the iPhone.

Rumors are swirling about what AT&T had to give up ($$$, its soul, etc) to be the exclusive provider of the ultra-hot/over-hyped, but quite beautifully designed multi-play phone. Last week, more rumors swirled that AT&T’s network upgrade, a.k.a. “Fine EDGE” is a result of the need for additional bandwidth to accommodate the expected load on the 2G network.

There is no doubt that Apple designs beautiful devices. But, I guess AT&T subscribers who know better than to get a first generation Apple device will have to put up with less than stellar network coverage, until things get smoothed out.

Networking

Big cable operators, such as Comcast and Time Warner, are a traditionally conservative bunch, especially when it comes to technology. But, the winds appear to be changing. Today, China Martens writes that open-source messaging app company, Zimbra, announced they’ve entered into a “strategic partnership” with Comcast to deliver a unified communications dashboard to subscribers, for free.

Last month, our open-source networking client Vyatta announced that Comcast’s investment arm, Comcast Interactive Capital, led their Series B round of funding. This was the first open source investment by the company.

All of this activity helps to support the fact that open source can be an effective and legitimate alternative to proprietary technologies, in spaces other than operating systems where Linux has a solid position. The open source story continues to unfold, and will be an interesting one to watch throughout the year.

cable, Comcast, Networking, open source, Video, Vyatta

It took a few years, but Sarah Jane Tribble of the Merc writes today that sales for the Valley’s networking and telecom companies are up. What’s driving the 21.3% growth in sales and a whopping 29.7% growth in the workforce? Video!

Over the past few years, consumers’ have shown an almost insatiable appetite for video – online, mobile, high def, etc. – and there are no signs of that slowing down. During a webinar last week, Om Malik said this is just the beginning of video. From what I’ve seen and heard lately, I tend to agree with him; there are a lot of exciting developments in the space. But, I guess we’ll have to see how video and consumption will evolve over the next few years.

Networking

Back in February, my colleague and sometimes partner-in-crime (thanks for bailing us out Giovanni!), Mimi Harris, caught me in a little online game of Tag. Thankfully this isn’t the elementary school version with scraped knees and hair pulling… (Girls can be very competitive).

Five things people probably don’t know about me, or were afraid to ask… Let’s get to it:
1. Before turning to the dark side (j/k) and getting into PR, I wanted to be an equine veterinarian. I had logged about 1,000 hours of field work before the end of my freshman year of college.
2. My favorite band of all time is Sublime.
3. My favorite wine of all time is an 2003 Arista Zinfandel. Fruit-forward with a bit of pepper, just fantastic! I think you can get the last few bottles on eBay
4. I took 4 years of French in high school, and another 2 years in college.
5. I’ve been riding horses (mainly show jumpers) for 20 years. It’s challenging, but so much fun.

Next up is: Allan Leinwand, Marissa Root, Katie Hallen, Rachel L, and our blogmaster extraordinaire, Joel Postman.

Networking

Being in high-tech PR and a part of the Eastwick coven, I’m almost ashamed to say that this is my very, first blog post…ever.  But, the time has come to jump into the blogosphere with at least one foot, and maybe a few toes…

Since coming to Silicon Valley, almost two long years ago, I’ve made a little niche for myself, working with some great companies in home and enterprise networking - Ruckus Wireless, BroadLogic, and Vyatta - just to name a few…

Along the way, I started meeting some really interesting folks at Valley events and within agency client companies, and found that it’s “all about networking.” 

So, with that, this is the beginning of my non-linear “adventures in networking.”  Enjoy!

Networking